


The Potter Twins

by ShaniBexKitty



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Amelia is Awesome, Augusta is Great, Badass Minerva, F/F, F/M, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Political Alliances, Severus Snape Has a Heart, Sirius Black Free from Azkaban, competent adults
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:53:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25961647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShaniBexKitty/pseuds/ShaniBexKitty
Summary: TwinFic, Harry and his sister Helena are taken by the Dursley's by Andi and Ted. Politically powerful Potters. Actual Competent Adults, Sucks to be Albus Dumbledore
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Prologue

Prologue.  
Helena Alice Potter had always known that she and her twin brother Harry were very different from their relatives. The Dursleys had always reminded them that they were ‘freaks’ but now, Helena knew differently. She knew the truth.  
It all started a month before the twins turned eleven. Uncle Vernon had ordered her and Harry to fetch the mail and for the first time in their lives there were letters addressed to them! Helena knew how their uncle would react and so, slipped hers into the cupboard she shared with her brother before taking the rest of the mail to the kitchen table. Harry, unfortunately, had taken his with him, only to have Dudley snatch the letter away. Aunt Petunia took one look at the letter and paled, meanwhile, Vernon rounded on the twins;  
“You will not be going to that freak place! I won’t allow it!” he screamed, grabbing the girl by the hair and pinning her to the wall. Harry tried to come to his twin’s defence, only to have Dudley grab him by the throat. Laughing gleefully at the pain he was inflicting.  
“Stop, both of you, they must be watching us!” Petunia screeched. The twins were dropped back to the floor gasping. Helena looked up at her aunt and saw, an expression that looked vaguely like remorse, as quickly as the look came it was gone as Dudley looked at her, put out that she had put a stop to their fun. Vernon sent one last kick into her gut before tossing the twins into their cupboard. Mercifully, Helena had not heard the all too familiar crack in her ribcage this time, her shoulder though, had clearly been dislocated again when she had hit the floor, but the girl had long ago figured out how to pop it back in.  
What followed was several weeks in which the same letters appeared daily and in ever increasing quantities, despite Vernon’s best efforts to stop them. His efforts culminated in dragging the whole family to a shack in the middle of the sea to outrun the letters. His attempt was finally foiled by a large man named Hagrid breaking down the door of the shack and telling her and her brother some truths in person.  
Harry and Helena were magical and were invited to attend a school called Hogwarts. This much she had learned from opening her letter when nobody, not even Harry, was looking. She hadn’t told her twin, for fear he would blurt something out, but that was no longer a worry. Their parents, whose names, they finally learnt, James and Lily Potter had not died in a car crash as they had been led to believe but had been murdered. For some reason, the killer, whom Hagrid would only refer to as You Know Who, had then attempted to kill Harry, but the spell had backfired, banishing You Know Who and leaving Harry with a distinctive lightning-bot scar on his forehead.  
This apparently made the twins famous, as they found out the hard way when Hagrid escorted them to Diagon Alley, and they were mobbed by well-wishers until Hagrid had finally got them through the Alley and into a bank called Gringotts. That was when things really got interesting.


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW, Reference to child abuse.

Chapter 1.  
As soon as the twins had given their names to a bank teller, Hagrid was sent away and they were ushered into an office and a goblin named Griphook, who was apparently their account manager, joined them.  
“Lord and Lady Potter, I’m relieved you could finally join us. It seems a certain white-bearded old fool has been illegally, redirecting your mail” the goblin announced. The twins stared at him in confusion.  
“Oh but of course, you wouldn’t know about your titles yet. No matter suffices to say your father was extremely wealthy and you would have that money if your parents’ Will had not been sealed, illegally by the previously mentioned white-bearded old fool. Now that you’re here though, we can read it” Griphook explained. The twins just nodded and held each other’s hands for support as Griphook reached for the document in question and read it, his eyebrows shooting up as he read.  
“Who have you been living with?” he demanded.  
“Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon”, Helena told him. “I take it that that wasn’t what our parents wanted?” The goblin swore loudly in a language the twins didn’t understand at Helena’s response, before signalling another goblin and ordering him to find a woman named Andromeda Tonks and her husband Ted.  
“Lady Lily, explicitly stated that under no circumstances, were you to go to her sister and her husband. She was sure that you would be horribly mistreated if you were raised with them and in any case, children of your standing should never have been raised outside the magical world,” Griphook snapped. At this, Harry looked down in shame, while Helena gave the goblin a piercing look that confirmed his fears that Lady Lily was right.  
“Mum obviously knew her sister’s attitude to anything she considered different, but I’m sure even she never pictured her children having a cupboard as their shared bedroom for ten years” Helena began explaining, only to be cut off by a feral growl that almost had her cowering in her seat. Griphook seemed to realise the effect that his reaction had on the clearly shocked girl and visibly reigned in his temper.  
“I’m sorry I startled you children. You should know that in the eyes of the Goblin Nation, there is no greater sin than child abuse. We may be a warrior race and I’ll readily admit that we can be violent, but we would never, under any circumstances, turn that violence on a child! Lady Lily must be rolling in her grave. I can’t understand how two sisters could turn out so different”, he explained, the twins nodded, relieved that the goblin’s anger was not directed at them.   
Helena was nervous but she decided to ask the question she wanted to know the answer to. “What were Mum and Dad like sir? Aunt Petunia never told us anything about them that was true, and Hagrid would only tell us about how they died and how wonderful they were. You strike me as someone who won’t say something they don’t mean. Please, even just tell us something small?” she said, eyes sparkling with hope for information. Griphook smiled at the two young people in front of him, realising that they were woefully ignorant of their place in wizarding society, through no fault of their own, of course.  
“Lady Lily was one of the most extraordinary young people, I have ever had the pleasure of working with. She was one of the few people that instantly treated my people with respect. Most wizards just demand what they want and treat us like we’re beneath their notice, but she was smart and genuinely interested in our opinions and culture.” He said with a sad smile on his face. The twins looked eager for more, so he continued.  
“Lord James, I knew longer. He took a little while to mature into the wonderful man he became. Your mother apparently called him an arrogant toe-rag for most of their Hogwarts years. after his parents died though, he grew up fast and Lily finally saw someone that she could love in him.”  
“Thank you so much for that Griphook” Helena said, “But I suppose we should get back to business.”, the goblin blinked a moment and then nodded. While they had been speaking, a regal looking woman had entered the room with a kindly looking man following behind her.  
“Ah Andromeda, lovely to see you again. I was just explaining the list of guardians to young Harry and Helena here. It seems as though a certain manipulative old coot thought it was acceptable to have the children placed with people that forced them to sleep in a cupboard” Griphook told her as she and Ted introduced themselves to the twins.  
“Who was supposed to raise us?” Harry asked, hesitantly.  
“Well you were supposed to be raised by your Godfather, Sirius Black, but unfortunately, he was thrown into Azkaban, the wizarding prison”, Griphook explained.  
“Why is he in jail?” Helena asked, hoping that if he sounded like a safe guardian, somebody could find a way to get him out. He surely couldn’t be any worse than the Dursleys, after all.  
“Allegedly, for telling Voldemort where to find the Potters and then killing 12 muggles, as well as other friend Peter Pettigrew”. The twins stared at Griphook, wide-eyed and confused. he continued his explanation.  
“According to this will though, the vow he took when he became your Godfather, would kill him if he did anything that would cause you irreparable harm, which betraying you to Voldemort would certainly do.”  
“So, we will have to figure out why the fuck he’s still in Azkaban, something like that would certainly have come out at his trial, assuming he actually got one.” Andromeda barked. Griphook simply looked at the woman and nodded in agreement.  
“Who else was listed?” Ted asked. His wife had jumped into Healer mode upon seeing how skinny the children were and was furiously casting diagnostic charms, looking more and more furious with each spell, but reigning in her temper enough to not scare the children so Ted decided to take over the conversation with Griphook, knowing his wife would fill him in once the children weren’t present.  
“In order, Alice and Frank Longbottom, your wife and yourself, and Minerva McGonagall, with Remus Lupin of course being allowed regular contact, despite his condition preventing him from being their guardian” the goblin explained.  
“Well Alice and Frank certainly can’t take them in their state, and Minerva is too much under Dumbledore’s thumb. We’ll certainly take them at least until Sirius is free and we’ll contact Remus straight away, we don’t have anything against werewolves since our daughter went to school with one” Ted said, Andromeda’s expression confirming that statement.  
“I already took the liberty of contacting Mr. Lupin and I’m told he’s waiting just outside. Let’s just scan them for special abilities and then we’ll let you four get on with your shopping” the two adults and two children nodded and Griphook told each of the twins to drop a little blood on to some pieces of parchment. Andromeda’s eyebrows shot up as she read the parchment.  
“Both of you inherited Parseltongue, the ability to talk to snakes from the Peverell line and both of you have an affinity with animals” Andromeda exclaimed.  
“Well, this has been a most illuminating day, but I won’t keep you any longer. I shall contact Madam Bones about the matter of Lord Black, and I’ll be in touch” Griphook told them. The small group nodded in thanks and left the bank, to find a shabby but friendly looking man waiting on them. He took one look at the children and shot in their direction.  
“Thank god you two are okay, I’ve been trying to locate you for years, but Dumbledore refused to tell me anything, except that you were happy and well cared for” the man said, Helena snorted derisively at that statement.  
“Uncle Moony?” Harry asked, a look of vague recognition crossing his face at the same time as Helena cried, “Uncle Wolfie?” Remus paled at Helena’s nickname for him.  
“You remember?” the man asked, shocked. Helena simply nodded and sprang at the man joyfully. Remus looked up at Andi and Ted and he could tell from the looks on their faces that he had been lied to by Dumbledore. As he hugged his cubs, he realised how painfully thin they seemed to be, as well as the unmistakeable, lingering smell of dried blood, that the other adults, who did not have his canine sense of smell, would have missed. Their bodies did not seem like the bodies of children that were happy and well cared for.  
“The goblins just told us that both kids have an affinity with animals, so I’m not surprised she remembered that you’re a werewolf. We were just going to see if either of them might have a familiar” Andi told Remus. He nodded hesitantly at the group as they headed in that direction.  
“Don’t worry Remus, you know how fond our daughter was of Chiara, you’ll be welcome to visit us as often as you like. They’ve been living with Lily’s sister so goodness knows they could use some advice before going to Hogwarts” Ted reassured the man, by this point Harry was also clinging to Remus as the group made their way towards the pet shop. Remus practically growled at the mention of Petunia! What had that awful woman done to his cubs? He would have lost it then and there if Harry’s question hadn’t distracted him.  
“Are familiars different from pets?” Harry asked curiously, Remus smiled indulgently at the twins and answered Harry’s question.  
“Yes Harry, most animals are pets, but familiars have a special kind of bond with their owners. Like what the muggles might call telepathy. I remember when you two were around six months old, this ginger kitten that must’ve been half-kneazle, wandered into your garden and wouldn’t leave Helena alone. Padfoot always made fun of him because its face was a bit squashed, but Lily loved him, and you used to chase him around on your toddler broom. His name was Crookshanks. I never did learn what happened to him after that night, but he was very smart, smart enough that he hated Peter, so he might’ve survived and found his way somewhere safe” he explained.  
They had reached the pet shop by that point and just as Helena stepped inside, she was jumped on by a fluffy orange mass.  
“Crookshanks?” Helena and Remus exclaimed at the same time. The cat just glared at Remus as though questioning his intelligence, while snuggling into Helena’s arms, delighted to be reunited with his human once more. While his sister was reacquainting herself with her long-lost half-kneazle, a magnificent snowy owl had flown to Harry’s shoulder and started grooming his hair. Helena smirked at the thought that even a bird recognised that Harry’s hair was a mess.  
“Apparently, this gorgeous girl is Hedwig and I am her human” Harry told them, petting the owl’s feathers. Hedwig preened as Helena came over to pet her as well.  
“Will you deliver mail for both of us, pretty girl?” Helena asked the owl. Harry and Hedwig both nodded at the same time in response.  
“Well that was easy. How about we grab things you need for these two, then get your wands and go home? We can get the rest of your things another day. Our daughter, Dora will be thrilled to meet you once she gets home from work!” Ted suggested. He could see that the children looked overwhelmed and he couldn’t blame them, they had been given a lot of information in a very short amount of time and if his suspicions about the Dursleys were correct and they had been abused, then it would be better not to overwhelm them more. Harry and Helena visibly relaxed at the suggestions and followed Ted towards the counter.  
***  
Later that night the adults finally got to have a discussion. The twins had been even more shaken after their visit to Ollivander’s. Andromeda smirked at the look on the old man’s face when Helena bonded with a wand that had the potentially lethal combination of Cherry and Dragon Heartstring. Harry’s wand was Holly and Phoenix Feather. Then Ollivander had proceeded to tell the clearly overwhelmed eleven-year olds that Harry’s wand had a twin core to the wand that had murdered their parents! Andromeda could have strangled him at that. At least they had taken to Dora and she was able to cheer them up a bit. Dora herself was thrilled to have younger, almost siblings.  
The medical scans that she had surreptitiously run on the twins had shown severe malnutrition and more broken and improperly healed bones than she cared to count. When the twins had been shocked at not only, receiving beds, but individual rooms. That, as well as the few bits of information the twins had let slip about their childhood over the course of the day, had she and Remus both fighting back the urge to murder certain muggles.  
Andi was pacing the room like a lioness ready to strike at any second, Remus looked ready to unleash Moony on the Dursleys for daring to harm his ‘cubs’ and Dora had gone to call her boss, Amelia Bones in the DMLE. Ted was trying to calm down his furious wife.  
“Andi calm down! I will get in touch with my contacts in muggle law enforcement and child services first thing in the morning. For now, though, the twins are with us and therefore safe.” He soothed.  
Dora came back into the room just then. “I’ve spoken to Madam Bones. She went to the records department after Griphook contacted her and confirmed that Sirius did not get a trial even before I called her. She went ballistic when she realised and she sent Moody and Shacklebolt to retrieve Sirius straight away, she’s having him moved to the DMLE Secure Ward at St. Mungos to make sure he’s okay after so many years with the dementors, as well as to ensure that nobody tries to prevent him getting a trial this time” she said.  
“Well thank god she’s in charge now. Crouch must really have something against Sirius if he gave my dear sister a trial and not Siri. Crouch’s own son was given a trial”, Andromeda grumped, taking a sip of her scotch.  
“Assuming it actually was Crouch that got in the way and not Dumbledore. He had the better motive if he wanted to control the twins, which clearly, he did, since he placed them with Petunia straight away when he should have at the very least given them to Alice. The Longbottom’s weren’t attacked till almost a week later.” Ted pointed out.  
“The big question is really, why Dumbledore wants control of the twins so desperately” Remus pointed out. Growling at the thought that the man he had been so grateful to, had looked up to all these years, had not only lied to him, but had been at least partially responsible for causing his precious cubs so much pain.  
“Amelia also asked if she could bring Augusta Longbottom and come and also talk to the twins here, where they will have a bit more privacy, rather than having them go to the Ministry where nosy people will see them. The last thing any of us want is for this to end up on the front page of the Daily Prophet. I thought her reaction to Sirius not getting a trial was bad, but when she heard that the twins may have been abused! Well I’ll just say I’m glad I’m in her good books” Dora added. Her mother smiled, finally calming down a little, knowing Amelia, the Dursley’s would not be having an easy time of it, very soon.  
“Why does Amelia want to bring Augusta?” Remus asked, gently sipping his gin and tonic.  
“A couple of reasons. She’s thinking that since Augusta is on both the Wizengamot and the Hogwarts’ Board of Governors, that she will be able to help us make a case against Dumbledore, since it was him that left the twins on that doorstep in the first place. Secondly, if things had gone according to the Potters’ Will, they would have likely been raised alongside Neville, with Augusta as a surrogate grandmother. I think that’s kind of an opening for the twins to meet Neville and Susan” Tonks explained, as well as speculating out loud, Andi nodded, thinking that her daughter had gauged the situation pretty well.  
Andi grinned almost predatorily, “Augusta’s exactly the kind of ally that we need in a situation like this when we have to fight against someone with Dumbledore’s clout, and it will certainly help Helena and Harry to make a few friends before they start Hogwarts” , she mused, her fingers rhythmically taping on the side of her glass.  
Ted turned to Remus, sensing that he was still upset that the twins had been so royally screwed over. “Why don’t you stay here tonight Remus? The kids seem to have warmed to you pretty quickly and I’m sure they’ll be glad to have you around when they have to talk to Madam Bones tomorrow” he suggested. Remus looked reluctant to accept the offer, but he would do it for the cubs. After all, Dora had shared a dorm room with Chiara for seven years and been perfectly fine, so of course this family was willing to trust Moony.  
With all the important things set in motion, the adults decided to get some sleep. The revelations of today had changed all of their lives and they knew that tomorrow would be gruelling for the twins, and they would need a lot of support. Everyone there that evening made a silent promise to James and Lily that they would be there to provide that support.


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW, Flashbacks to child abuse. Memories are italicised.

Chapter 2.

Andromeda woke the next morning to the smell of bacon. Ted, Remus and the twins were already sitting at the dining table when she entered the lounge. The children were sipping orange juice and tentatively nibbling on toast and bacon, as if they thought the food might be snatched away from them at any second. Andi couldn’t believe that any child could be this wary of basic human decency. As a healer, she had seen plenty of abused children before, but she’d never seen children that were forced to sleep in a cupboard and so obviously starved. She decided to assuage their fears quickly but, knew that she would have to tread carefully  
“Harry, Helena, listen to me.” The twins looked up as she addressed them. She could see fear in their eyes as though they expected to be punished for something. Internally cursing the Dursley’s, she softened her tone as she continued.  
“Ted, Dora and I want you to think of this house as your home now. We want you to be part of our family. What your relatives did to you, that’s not how family treats each other and nobody in this house will ever do that to you” she reassured them. The twins nodded and Harry looked as if he wanted to say something, Andromeda nodded encouragingly.  
“Petunia always told the neighbours that we were trouble. Dudley loves to bully younger kids, but we always got the blame. We were punished for getting better marks than Dudley, or accidentally doing magic, or asking any questions. We tried to tell teachers, but they never believed us, so we stopped trying” He explained, his tone deadpan, as though what he was saying was completely normal. Remus’s eyes were watering at this point and Harry looked stressed out, so Helena took over the talking.  
“We always had to do all the cooking and Petunia would hit us with the frying pan if we burned the bacon. Usually we would get a crust of bread and some water at most meals and we’d get salad at dinner because Vernon and Dudley wouldn’t eat any. But if we did something bad, we weren’t given anything at all. A few weeks ago, it was Dudley’s birthday and we went to the zoo. Normally we aren’t allowed to go, but Mrs. Figg who usually watches us couldn’t do it that day, so the Dursley’s had to take us. We were talking to a boa constrictor and Dudley shoved us out of the way to get a better look and then the glass vanished, and he fell in and the snake escaped. Vernon was so angry; I think Harry and I had at least a few broken ribs after that and we didn’t get let out of the cupboard or given food for a week.” She said. Like Harry, Helena’s tone was very matter of fact as she said all this. Dora had wandered into the room by this point and sat down at the table to embrace the twins.  
“Well I can promise that nothing of that sort will happen to you again and Bones will most certainly be going after your relatives for it, as well as anyone else who was responsible for you ending up there” she said.   
Remus seemed to have figured out the true reason for their concern;  
“Cubs, I’m sure you must be used to hearing false promises of help from adults and we all understand why you don’t want to get your hopes up. I swear to you though, on the memory of your parents, that we will do everything in our power to ensure that you two have a much better life from here on out.” Harry and Helena both looked happier at that statement.  
“Madam Bones is one of the best people I know”, Dora said, “She’s tough, a woman in her position has to be, but she’s kind to anyone who’s in the right and she’s good with kids. During the war, every one of her relatives was killed, except for her niece, Susan. She raised Susan and she loves her with everything she has. Susan will be in your year at school and I’m sure that Madam Bones will do as much to help you as she would for Susan.”.  
“You kids probably haven’t yet grasped, just how revered you are in our world” Ted began to explain. “In 1981, the war was wiping out entire families, Voldemort was winning and there seemed to be no end in sight. Then Halloween came, and he attacked your home. He’d been looking for Harry for months, we don’t know why, but something unexpected happened that night. For some reason, when he tried to kill Harry, his spell backfired onto him and just like that, the war was over. The Potters are considered heroes and I’m sure many people would be devastated to find out how you’ve been treated” he explained.  
“They called us, the Twins Who Lived, but all I can think about is the other side of that coin, the Parents Who Died, the orphans abandoned” Helena said incredulously.  
“I know what you mean sweetie, but we all thought you were safe and happy. Dumbledore assured everyone that you were fine and he’s so powerful that the wizarding world just believed him without question” Dora said sadly.  
“That man has a hell of a lot to answer for” Andi growled; the other adults simply nodded in agreement. The kids turned back to their breakfast and the adults decided to just leave them to it. They’d been given a lot of information already and today was not going to be easy for them.  
*  
An hour later, a serious looking woman with a monocle had arrived, accompanied by a regal looking woman with a strange, vulture topped hat. They had introduced themselves as Amelia Bones and Augusta Longbottom and were now sitting across from the twins in the lounge, while Andi and Ted sat either side of them and Dora sat on the other sofa. Amelia addressed them first.  
“Now I’m sure that Dora already explained who I am and why I’m here. She and the Goblins have given me their analysis of your situation, but I want to hear it from you. We will prosecute the Dursleys with the help of some contacts in the muggle legal system who are all either squibs or muggleborns, so there’s no concern about the Statute of Secrecy. Since you two are minors, your memories will suffice as evidence and you won’t ever need to see them again” Amelia told them, the twins looked visibly relieved when Amelia told them that they wouldn’t have to be present for the trial.   
Andromeda added, “I’ve already done some basic medical scans Ami. Both of them are malnourished and have many improperly healed fractures. They seem shocked every time they’re shown even the most basic kindness. The Dursleys made them both sleep in the cupboard under the stairs and never told them anything about James and Lily”. Amelia nodded at that and Augusta looked appalled.  
“Normally I wouldn’t suggest this, but given the severity of what you’ve been through, it may be easier for me to use a pensieve rather than having you both actually tell me things” Amelia continued.  
“What’s a pensieve?” Helena asked.  
“It’s a special magical device, all you have to do is think of your memories with your relatives and I’ll withdraw them from your head. Then all of us would place a finger in the bowl and we would be able to view your memories rather than having you recount everything. This would give the added advantage of allowing us to see details you may not remember to mention” Amelia explained. Harry and Helena exchanged looks, seemingly having a silent conversation.  
“We’re okay with that idea if Andi thinks it’s okay” Harry decided, Helena nodded in agreement. Andromeda also nodded her permission for Amelia to go ahead as the twins joined hands.  
Amelia produced the bowl from the bag that she’d brought with her, then, watching them the entire time for signs of discomfort, put her wand to first, Harry, and then Helena’s temples. Wisps of silver vapour were attached to her wand each time and it was these that she placed in the pensieve. When she was finished collecting the memories, everybody moved forward and placed a finger in the bowl.  
Amelia found herself standing in what looked like a bedroom. There was a crib in front of her with two babies and a young, redhaired woman stood protectively in front of them. Even through the slight haze that came with viewing very old memories, she realised with horror, that she must be in Godric’s Hollow. She heard a voice downstairs that she knew to be James yelling; “Peter, how could you? Lily take the kids and run; I’ll hold them off”. After that a lot of banging and a shout of “Avada Kedavra” and then a few seconds of silence, before a figure in dark robes entered the nursery, followed by a chubby, rat-like man.  
“Please, not my babies, not my children, take me, kill me instead” the woman begged.  
“Stand aside you silly girl” the shrill voice of the dark-robed figure replied. Lily continued begging for mercy for her children, Amelia was on the verge of tears as Voldemort lifted his wand.  
“Avada Kedavra” he yelled again. Lily dropped like a stone and Voldemort carelessly stepped over her corpse and aimed his wand at Harry now. “Avada Kedavra” he yelled again and there was the expected jet of green light, followed by an unexpected explosion.   
The memory suddenly changed…  
“You can’t seriously be thinking of leaving them here Albus?” a Scottish female voice said. This memory was hazier, as if the children were half asleep, or the memory was old.  
“Petunia Dursley is the only living family they have Minerva. Harry will be safe as long as he remains with his mother’s blood” a man replied.  
“I’ve been watching them all day Albus! They really are the worst sort of muggles imaginable” the woman snapped.  
“Nevertheless, this is the safest option for Harry right now”  
“Are you even going to knock Albus? Are you going to give Petunia the common courtesy of telling her in person that her sister was murdered? Are you going to ask if she can take the children?”  
The memory, abruptly changed again…   
“Freaks get up! Time to cook breakfast” a shrill, female voice shrieked. Amelia heard the sound of a door being unlocked and two children, who looked to be about four, leapt of the threadbare mattress and exited the tiny room which was actually a cupboard. The tiny children ran for the kitchen and immediately began cooking. The boy began frying bacon on a stovetop he could barely reach while the girl put bread in the toaster and boiled a pot for tea. Other than the insanity of two children this age being forced to do all the cooking and handle such hot things, the scene appeared somewhat stable until the woman shouted at Harry.  
“Freak, you’ve burned the bacon again” she shrieked. Harry was so startled that he let go of the frying pan too quickly. The pan slid off the stovetop and landed, still burning hot on Helena’s foot. Instead of making sure the girl was alright and tending to her severe burns, the woman grabbed Harry by the ear and dragged him back to the cupboard, all the while berating him for his carelessness. Helena instead of screaming and crying as would be expected of a four-year-old, no, of anyone who had just suffered such severe burns, simply grabbed the toast as it popped up and started buttering it.  
The memory changed again…  
The next memories were a blur. Helena was being chased up a tree by a bulldog, the dog being encouraged by a morbidly obese woman… Harry was being chased by his cousin and some friends… Helena proudly handed a report card to her aunt, only to be slapped harshly and for the uncle to drag her by the hair back to the cupboard…  
The blurred memories stopped and a clearer one began. Now the twins looked about the age they were today. A large man ordered the children to go fetch the mail. Amelia’s sense of dread crept up once she recognised the familiar Hogwarts letters in the pile. Helena quickly hid hers in the cupboard, but Harry took his back to the kitchen with him. A large boy, presumably their cousin saw the letter and snatched it from Harry’s hand, giving it to his parents. The reaction was immediate.   
“You will not be going to that freak place! I won’t allow it!” he screamed, grabbing the girl by the hair and pinning her to the wall. Harry tried to come to his twin’s defence, only to have Dudley grab him by the throat. Laughing gleefully at the pain he was inflicting.  
“Stop, both of you, they must be watching us!” Petunia screeched. The twins were dropped back to the floor gasping. Amelia saw a look in the woman’s eyes that looked vaguely like remorse. As quickly as the look came it was gone though as the fat boy looked at his mother, put out that she had put a stop to their fun. Vernon sent one last kick into Helena’s gut before tossing the twins into their cupboard. Helena winced as she got to her feet. She clutched at her left arm and with the ease that came from having done it many times, manipulated her shoulder until everyone heard the unmistakable pop, of the shoulder being put back in its socket. Harry massaged his throat, where a bruise was already forming, while Helena prodded her ribs, as though surprised none of them were broken.  
The group finally pulled away from the pensieve, all of them relieved that the memories were over. Helena’s face was a mask of indifference, showing no emotion. Harry hung his head in shame, Dora looked slightly nauseous. Amelia’s heart went out to the two children. She thought Susan had it rough, having lost every member of her family, sans Amelia herself, but these two, parents murdered right in front of them, godfather wrongly imprisoned, godmother tortured into insanity and then they were abandoned to the mercy of abusive relatives. She tried to keep her tone even as she finally addressed the twins.  
“Thank you both, for being so open with us. I know it can’t have been easy to have to relive all those memories and I’m sorry you had to go through that. I promise that I will bring those people to justice and that you will never have to see any of them again. These memories can be used in place of you testifying in person” she stated. The twins nodded gratefully.  
“Harry, Helena, I’m Augusta Longbottom. I would have gladly helped raise you alongside my own grandson Neville, if a certain old man hadn’t conspired against us” the other woman spoke up.  
“Amelia has told me that she has scheduled Sirius Black’s long overdue trial for a week from now, to give him some time to recover from a decade of exposure to dementors” she continued. The twins shuddered, Dora had told them what dementors were and how they could make you feel, and they hated the thought that Sirius had been stuck with them for so long.  
“We would like Ted and Andromeda to be there at the trial, but we really don’t want you two having to cope with the attention your presence would bring” Amelia explained.  
“As such, I would like to invite the two of you to Longbottom Manor on that day. You could meet Neville and also Amelia’s niece, Susan, both of whom will be in your year at Hogwarts. You would also be safe and out of the spotlight that way” Augusta suggested. Andromeda nodded at that suggestion.  
“That’s an excellent idea, it will take your mind off things if you have some new friends around you” she told them with a smile.  
“Of course, the trial is mostly a formality, as I’ve already spoken to Sirius while he was under Veritaserum. He insisted on having a public trial because he thinks people will assume, he’s dark just because of who his family is, unless he gets a public trial” Amelia explained.  
“You mean he wants to be dramatic Ami? If he’s questioned under truth serum, he can rub it in the faces of all the Death Eaters that claimed the Imperius defence” Andi said, rolling her eyes at the thought.  
“I think he has one specific Death Eater in mind Andi” Augusta said  
“Ah yes, my dear brother in law no doubt. He’ll certainly be miffed once he realises his son Draco is no longer the next in line to be Lord Black” Andi smirked.  
“Well Harry, Helena, thank you for your time and I look forward to getting to know you better. Andi, Ted, Auror Trainee Tonks, could I please talk to you three for a while?” Amelia said. The three older witches exchanged looks.  
“Would you like to see some photos of your parents children? And if Amelia doesn’t mind, I can show you a few of my memories in the pensieve” Augusta jumped in, turning to the twins. They nodded eagerly and drew closer to Augusta. Amelia nodded gratefully at the other woman, glad that she had jumped in with a distraction for the children. As Augusta began telling them stories about their parents and godmother. The three Tonkses and Remus followed Madam Bones to the back garden. Once a silencing ward had been placed on the door, the usually stoic Madam Bones, finally let her mask slip.  
“Ted, you are going to contact our friend Constable Shepperd in Surrey and have those animals arrested right now! Andi contact Healer Robbins and have her come and independently verify everything you’ve noted down. Then contact Healer Sloan to start brewing potions to fix as much of the damage as possible. Also contact Severus and Poppy so they can take over the potion brewing and healing once the twins get to Hogwarts!” Amelia barked out those orders, barely even registering the tears that now flowed down her cheeks. The Tonks, adults nodded grimly.  
“With permission Boss, I’d like to recuse myself from this case?” Dora spoke up, her voice shaking slightly as she addressed her boss. Amelia glanced at her questioningly, but Dora continued.  
“I know I’m new and should be jumping at a chance to take a case like this. However, I also feel as though there’s a conflict of interest. I may barely know these kids, but I love them already and I think I could serve them better by just being there to support them and focus on them. Shacklebolt can handle the relatives, but I want to make those two my primary focus until those animals are behind bars” Dora continued, angry tears also flowing down her face. Amelia nodded at her trainee.  
“You show a remarkable level of forethought Auror Tonks and I appreciate your candour. I agree that the twins need someone at their side during this process and given your closeness in age, you’re an ideal choice. Well done for thinking ahead and of course I accept your recusal request” Amelia praised.  
“Ted and I will contact everyone today, but right now, I just want to go back inside and hug those kids and shower them with ten years’ worth of love and affection” Andi said Ted and Remus nodded in agreement. Amelia grinned and followed the group back inside, where they were greeted by te welcome sound of two children laughing.  
“Gran was just showing us her memory of our first birthday party with Neville” Helena explained. Amelia showed a genuine smile at that memory.  
“Ah, I remember that day well. Susan and I had a lovely time” she said with a grin.  
“It was so nice to watch the children playing together and being happy. It did all of us good to forget just for a day that there was a war going on around us” Augusta agreed.   
“I distinctly remember your mother threatening to castrate Sirius for buying you two brooms” Remus chuckled.  
“Lily certainly had her hands full trying to keep you Marauders in line” Andi remarked.   
“Well I’m glad you two got to see some happy memories. I’m sure I’ll see you again before you start at Hogwarts and I hope you enjoy meeting Neville and Susan next week. I know Susan is really looking forward to meeting you” Amelia said, packing away the pensieve. “Andromeda, I’ll contact you about the time for Sirius’s trial and I’ll start making arrangements for a trial for the Dursley’s”.  
“I’ll see you two next week, Neville is looking forward to having you back in his life. We can be the family that James and Lily intended” Augusta said, giving both children a hug. With that, the two women departed.  
“Well kids, do you feel up to some shopping? You both need new wardrobes and it would probably be good to spend a little time in Diagon Alley. The more time you spend in our world, the sooner the fuss will slow down. We’ll eat lunch and dinner in the muggle world though?” Andromeda checked in. the twins nodded and so the family got ready for a day of shopping.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Hints at Domestic Violence. Not much in this chapter but it will come up again.

Andromeda paced nervously, outside the Wizengamot chambers. The trial was of the decade was about to begin. Barring any shenanigans from the likes of Malfoy, it was only a matter of hours before Sirius Black was a free man.

Andi knew she should be thrilled to be getting her only tolerable relative back, but her emotions were a mixed bag. She’d never truly believed that he was guilty, and he absolutely deserved to be free. What would he be like though, after all those years? What would he do once he took up the mantle of Lord Black? Would he forgive her, for not acting? Would he welcome her back with open arms? And the worst thought in her mind. Would he try to take the twins away?   
Andi was dreading this scenario. The Potter’s Will, gave him the legal claim to do it of course, not to mention that he could simply overrule her, as Lord of her House, even if she had been disowned. Andi knew all of this and hoped against hope that it would not happen. She had only known Harry and Helena for a little over a week, but she had grown fond of them very quickly. They were finally starting to accept that this loving home was their new reality, and they weren’t about to be sent back to the Dursley’s. The healer in her knew that it would be detrimental for them to be moved again so soon, but could she convince Sirius of that?

They’d been so happy this morning when she and Ted had dropped them off at Augusta’s house. Augusta, it seemed had decided to invite a few extra people. When they arrived, she’d seen, Susan as she had expected, as well as Lord Cyrus and Lady Cordelia Greengrass, with their daughters, Daphne and Astoria, Maximillian and Samantha Abbot and their daughter and Susan’s best friend Hannah, as well as Heathcliff and Lydia Davis and their daughter Tracey. Apart from Astoria, all of the children present would be starting at Hogwarts together in just three weeks, so it was probably a good thing that the twins got to meet them all, today, rather than later. She shouldn’t have really been surprised that Augusta had invited them over. All the adults present were prominent members of the Wizengamot’s Neutral faction.

Augusta had visited with the twins several times over the past week, to get them up to speed on the Potter family’s position within British magical society and teach them about wizarding customs, so it was only natural that she would be the one to arrange for the twins to begin meeting with future allies. Those two children, the Lord and Lady Potter, had the political clout to be a force to be reckoned with, so they needed to learn fast before somebody could try to take advantage of their lack of knowledge.

Andi shook herself out of her musings, she would talk to Sirius in person very soon and Andi was sure Sirius would be willing to listen to her reasons to have the twins stay with her, at least for a while longer and if he wasn’t happy to listen, she was willing to forced him, or just set Ted and Remus on him. He would listen to Remus at least. Taking a deep breath, she entered the chambers, to watch her favourite cousin become a free man once again.  
*  
Amelia paced her office nervously. Sirius’s trial was today, and her emotions were swirling. The trial itself was really just a formality, but it was what would come after the trial that worried her. She thought back to the last time she had seen Sirius Black and her heart ached. The two of them had been blissfully in love, for a while, but then the war reached a boiling point. Almost her entire family had died, and she suddenly had to take on the role of mother to her one-year old niece, Susan. The Potters and the Longbottoms had gone in to hiding for a then unknown reason. Everything was, to put it nicely, a clusterfuck!

Sirius had turned up at her house, wanting to talk. Susan had been restless, and she was exhausted and grumpy and grieving. Sirius had chosen that night, to get down on one knee, and damn fool that she was, she had turned him down. Could that have been part of the reason, he had run off after Peter, instead of taking the twins? Was she partly responsible for where he’d ended up? Would he forgive her?

She knew that going back to the way they had been before, would be impossible now. They had both changed too much. She had clawed her way to where she was today, her gender counting against her every step of the way. He had spent the last decade in the nearest thing to hell on earth, all for a crime that somebody else had committed! God only knows what something like that would do to his psyche. She knew how awful she felt after being near a dementor for just a few minutes, but Sirius had been stuck with hundreds of those foul creatures for ten whole years! She still loved him though, so perhaps, they could start over. With a deep breath, she entered the chambers for the trial of the century.  
*  
An hour later, Kingsley was giving Sirius the antidote to Veritaserum and he rose from his seat a free man. Andromeda approached him and gave him a hug.  
“How does it feel to be a free man, cousin?” she asked.

“It feels wonderful to be proven innocent without a shadow of a doubt” he remarked. His voice rising a little more than necessary. Andromeda glanced behind her and saw the reason why. 

Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were behind them. Andromeda rolled her eyes at her cousin for antagonising Lucius. Narcissa looked as if she wanted to say something, but Lucius just snarled at Sirius, before grasping Narcissa by the arm and none too gently, dragging her away. Andromeda watched her baby sister being dragged away with a heavy heart. How she wished to rescue her sister from her bastard of a husband, it was now more obvious than ever, that there was no love between them, and that Cissy was miserable. Right now, though, she had a lot of things on her plate.

She, Ted, Dora and Sirius were soon joined by Amelia, Augusta and Cyrus Greengrass. The group made their way to Amelia’s office, they had much to discuss and Sirius needed to be brought up to speed. Before they could get there though, they were bombarded by the press.

“Andromeda, is it true that the Potter children are currently living with you and that their relatives abused them?” Rita Skeeter barked at them, that hated, green quill of hers already scribbling away. The press continued barking questions at the group until Augusta cleared her throat loudly. Andi was amused how quickly Augusta had managed to shut them up. She was a commanding presence, and when she spoke, people listened.

“Lord Harry and Lady Helena Potter are doing perfectly fine but would like the public to respect their privacy. As to their muggle relatives, we are leaving their fates to the muggle authorities” “Augusta began. “That is why, instead of being here today, they have instead asked me to read a statement, which I will do now”. Andi blinked; this was the first she had heard of any statement from the children, Augusta must’ve rubbed off on them more than she realised. Augusta cleared her throat and began reading.

We, the Lord and Lady Potter, the grandchildren of Dorea Potter, nee Black, would like to profusely thank both Madam Amelia Bones and Minister Cornelius Fudge, for today correcting the gross miscarriage of justice, perpetuated by the previous administration. We are delighted to have our Godfather, Lord Sirius Black, in our lives once more, just as our parents intended.  
We are sure that both Madam Bones and Minister Fudge will be most anxious to investigate, precisely how, Lord Black was not given a trial before now and we are confident that they will ensure that everybody responsible, will feel the weight of the Houses of Black and Potter, upon them.  
For now, we Potter’s are looking forward to getting to know our new family and to starting Hogwarts and hope that the press will give us space to do so.

With that, Augusta motioned for the press to let the group past and they finally reached the privacy of Amelia’s office. Once inside the adults exchanged looks, none of them had been expecting that statement to the press from the twins.

“Well that statement had Helena written all over it. She’s certainly taken your lessons on board rather quickly Augusta” Ted stated.  
“That statement was sheer genius!” Sirius exclaimed gleefully. “Fudge is going to love that level of praise and the fact that the blame was so neatly shifted away from him. He’ll eat that shit up. I can’t wait to meet this girl, with the balls to throw Albus Dumbledore under the bus” he continued giggling maniacally. Amelia smiled indulgently at the man who was sipping Firewhiskey for the first time in a decade.

“Yes, hopefully Rita, picks up on just whose name was left out of Helena’s thanks” Augusta remarked, drily. 

“Those two, and especially Helena, really have a bone to pick with Albus. She actually remembers the night; Dumbledore dumped the two of them at the Dursley’s. I’ve seen her memory of it He didn’t even acknowledge her that night, let alone notice that she was awake. If Albus is expecting the Potter’s to be his good little lapdogs, then he’s grossly miscalculated” Andi explained to Sirius.

“Lord have mercy on Filius, when he gets her in his house” Augusta remarked.

“What on earth do you mean Gus?” that move clearly had Gryffindor written all over it” Sirius retorted. Of course, only he would have the audacity to address Augusta that way.

“Don’t you call me that Black! And that statement was far too eloquent to not be the words of a future Ravenclaw” Augusta snapped back at him. 

“It doesn’t really matter where either of them gets sorted just yet. We have more important things to discuss” Amelia jumped in. they nodded and went back to business. Dumbledore and his machinations were at the forefront of all of their minds and there was a lot of information to catch Cyrus and Sirius up on.

“Andi, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to come and live with you for a few weeks?” Sirius began. “Clearly your family has been really good with the twins and I would hate to take them away from that. I’m sure Grimmauld Place is nowhere near habitable either, so having somewhere else to stay, while I fix that would be much appreciated.” Andi breathed a sigh of relief at Sirius’s words. He was not going to take the twins. She was more than happy to have Sirius stay with them for a few weeks. It meant that he and the twins could get reacquainted and she could look after all three of them, for Sirius was also clearly in need of some medical care. 

“Of course, you can stay with us Sirius. Use this time to, heal, bond with the twins and check in with the goblins about your financial situation. You can worry about everything else once the twins go off to Hogwarts. It would probably better if you had some company for a while anyway. You need to get used to being around humans again” Ted told him, Sirius smiled gratefully.

“Speaking of Hogwarts, we have much to discuss about Dumbledore’s misdeeds” Augusta pointed out. The group nodded and got down to business.

“Obviously, I think we all agree that we want him as far away from all of our children as possible. However, he currently has far too much influence for us to make that happen” Amelia stated. Sirius spoke up.

“Sadly, I think Ami’s right, but I also think that once the twins get to Hogwarts, he won’t be able to resist the urge to meddle and he’s bound to do something that we can use to go after him.”

“Yes, I think we wait and play the long game here” Augusta agreed. “Helena’s statement will hopefully spark some doubt if Skeeter has anything to say about it. At least we have many friends among the Neutrals, and we can build on that,” everyone nodded in agreement. 

“We should also check on the Potter Vaults, to see if he’s meddled there” Sirius added. The group looked appalled at the thought.

“You’re probably right about that Padfoot. For that though, we’ll probably need to work out the twins’ guardianship status. The goblins won’t let just anyone into the Potter Vaults” Remus reminded him.

“I can get on to that today” Amelia jumped in. “I’m sure Cornelius will jump at the chance to help, after Helena’s statement and with the Will it should be easy enough to get the paperwork up to scratch with Gringotts. That way, you’ll be their magical guardian, Sirius”, he nodded gratefully at her.  
“The twins did seem to have ingratiated themselves with Griphook, their account manager too” Ted added, smiling at the thought. Goblins generally disliked humans, so for Griphook to get on so well with the twins was almost unheard of.

“It would probably be easier if Andi and Ted were their guardians in the muggle world anyway” Sirius suggested. “I’m a single man, who just got out of prison, where as Ted is a lawyer in both worlds and has established connections” the rest of the group could see the logic in Sirius’s statement and Ted and Andi both nodded in agreement. 

“Well, well Sirius Black, actually thinking things through and making the sensible choice. I never thought I’d live to see the day” Cyrus remarked drily.  
“I’ve learned my lesson Cyrus”, Sirius stated. “I let grief cloud my judgement and acted without thinking that night and it cost me 10 years of freedom. Harry and Helena paid the price for my stupidity just as much as I did. From now on, their wellbeing will be my first priority and if that mean having Andi and Ted raise them instead of me, then so be it”.

‘Sirius, it’s not your fault that Dumbledore chose to disregard James and Lily’s wishes”, Amelia stated firmly. 

“From here on out, our task is to keep a close eye on the children and make sure Dumbledore doesn’t cause them any more problems. We’ll start digging into any dirt we can get on the man and hopefully get him kicked out of Hogwarts as soon as possible” Augusta said, the group nodded in agreement.

“That can wait until the twins are at Hogwarts, Augusta. For now, I’m sure Sirius is desperate for a shower and some clean clothes and the twins are desperate to get reacquainted with their Godfather” Ted pointed out. Sirius got to his feet eagerly and he and Remus followed Andi and Ted out the door. Ted was right, scheming could wait. For now, Sirius just wanted to spend time with Harry and Helena, getting to know them and making up for lost time.  
*  
“So, how was it meeting so many new people, kids?” Andromeda asked the twins later that evening.

“Daphne is certainly a mine of information on wizarding customs” Harry answered cautiously, he still wasn’t quite used to his opinion actually being asked for. He thought that Daphne was very nice, even if some of the thing she told them were rather shocking.

“Neville seems really nice, but he’s very shy. Susan and Hannah and Tracy are all lovely. I’m glad we’ll be going into the year with a decent group of friends” Helena piped up “that way it will be easier to avoid Dumbledore” she added.

“Yes, that’s certainly a relief” Sirius said. “Dora, Remus and I will teach you a few, simple defensive spells as well. students aren’t technically allowed to use magic outside school, but you two also technically aren’t students yet”.

“I suppose you’re right about that Padfoot, and it certainly wouldn’t hurt the twins to know a couple of spells early, especially when they have an Auror trainee to teach them” Remus mused. Dora nodded in agreement and Andi nodded approvingly, the twins looked relieved.

“I should also have a chat with Augusta about what I can do t help Neville. Your mother was his Godmother, and his parents suffered a pretty horrible fate, thanks to my psycho cousin. I’d be happy to do the same for him that I’m doing for you” Sirius said, Helena hugged him gratefully. The young woman had clearly taken a shine to the shy, sandy haired boy, but she was also very fond of Augusta and didn’t want to offend the older woman, in case she was punished harshly for it, as the Dursleys would have done. Sirius was happy to take the burden of his young Goddaughter’s shoulders. It hurt him to know that his Pups had so little trust in adults that they didn’t feel safe to stand up for themselves. He and Moony would have to sit down with Ted and figure out what they could do about the Dursleys. Sirius may have to curb his anger a little bit, so as not to end up in prison again, but perhaps a little financial ruin, would be hitting the Dursleys in the very near future. That would certainly ruin their reputation, which, according to Harry, was the thing they cared about most. Now that would be worth it to him and he was sure Ted would be able to use his legal contacts to assist him in that endeavour.

He had also noticed the way Andi had been looking at her sister Narcissa earlier. He had seen Lucius being rough with his wife and it made him angry. He may not particularly like Cissy, but she was still family and Andi clearly still loved her baby sister. He decided he would look into what he could still do to help his cousin, he just hoped, for Andi’s sake that Cissy proved herself worthy of that second chance. 

The other thing that he had to sort out was far more personal and he didn’t think that he could ask anyone else to help him with it. He had poured his heart out to Amelia and proposed, but she had rejected him that night. In hindsight, his timing had been terrible. She had just lost most of her family and suddenly had to take custody of little Susan. With James, Lily, Frank and Alice, all deep in hiding with Voldemort hunting them down, Sirius had been stressed out of his mind and in need of comfort. They were on the brink of losing the war and it had been a terrible time to be proposing marriage. 

That was ten years ago, though and circumstances were completely different. He had spent those years in the worst place on earth and he wasn’t the same person anymore. Was Amelia still the woman he fell in love with or was she now a stranger to him. Sirius realised that he didn’t even know if Amelia was even single, he would need to figure that out first. If she was available and willing, he would have to think seriously about whether he wanted to get back together, or whether there was even a place in his life for a woman right now.

“She hasn’t dated anyone else Sirius” Andi told him, he looked up at her.

“How did you?”

“It was a bit obvious by the look on your face Pads” Remus smirked. “I think you should talk to her, and I do mean talk Padfoot, you shouldn’t rush into a relationship right now you need time to heal.” Sirius nodded at his best friend, Moony was always the sensible one, Sirius would listen to his advice this time and just take each day as it came.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4. 

All too soon it was September the 1st, time for Harry and Helena to finally go to Hogwarts. The month spent with the Tonks’s, Remus and Sirius, as well as the new friends they had made, had done wonders for the children’s’ physical and mental health. Sirius was also slowly getting back to his old self again, all three of them were feeling the benefits of having a loving and supportive family around them.

Andi and Sirius had done their best to teach the twins about the political landscape of Hogwarts, the Potters being an important family, it was vital that the twins had at least a general idea of who was who among their classmates. Augusta, Amelia and the Greengrass’s had been immensely helpful in that area and their little group of allies would be putting up a united front when they arrived at Platform 9 ¾. All of them were worried about what Dumbledore might do, once he had the twins and even the other five kids under his jurisdiction. The group had been given plenty of warnings about avoiding him as much as possible and Griphook had even provide all seven children with rings to warn them if someone was attempting Legillimency on them, against a man of Dumbledore’s calibre, they probably wouldn’t actually stop him, but it would be enough to warn the children to get away.

“Have fun in Gryffindor, all of you!” Sirius called out. Remus rolled his eyes at his best friend.

“Padfoot don’t put pressure on them to go into Gryffindor, just because you bet me 20 galleons that both the twins would end up there” he scolded.  
“Oh, come on Moony, they’re Potters. Where else could they go?” Sirius tried to point out.

“Well, Remus and I have our bets that Harry will be a Gryffindor, but Helena is clearly bound for Ravenclaw” Dora piped up. “Of course, I wouldn’t be upset if they ended up in my old house. I’m sure Hannah and Susan would be glad of their company over in Hufflepuff” she added.

“Well as long as they stay friends with me when I end up in Slytherin” Astoria joined in the conversation, sad that she still had to wait another year before she joined them at Hogwarts. Daphne rolled her eyes at her little sister, but then gave her a hug, knowing that she would miss her terribly this year.

“You might end up in Ravenclaw, Daphne dear” her mother Cordelia smirked “And wherever you all end up I’m sure that your friendship will continue. Besides, imagine Dumbledore’s reaction if such a large group of friends appeared in all four houses”

‘He’d probably have a heart attack, just seeing a Gryffindor and a Slytherin talking politely to each other. Now that would be something I wouldn’t mind seeing” Amelia added. The rest of the group chuckled in agreement.

Remus noticed that Helena had remained quiet throughout the whole exchange. Seeing the worried look on her face, he pulled her aside to check on her.

“What’s wrong Hun?” he asked her.

“What if I’m not in Gryffindor? What would mum and dad think, what if Harry and I aren’t even in the same house?” Helena sounded uncharacteristically scared. Amelia, who had also heard the exchange approached the two.

“Helena, sweetie, siblings don’t always end up in the same house and it’s perfectly fine. It won’t change things between you and Harry, and it won’t change anything with any of the people that love you” the usually stern woman soothed, pulling Helena into a hug.

“And as for what James and Lily would think. Well your mother really could have gone to Ravenclaw herself; James’s mother was a Slytherin and his father was a Ravenclaw. They would be proud of you no matter where you’re sorted. Try not to worry so much” Remus reassured her. Helena nodded and hugged Remus fiercely, before rushing to say goodbye to Andi, Ted and Dora.

“We’d best get the children on the train now, if they want to have space to all sit together.” Augusta pointed out. With that they all started moving towards the back of the train, the adult handling the trunks while the children carried their pets. Hedwig and Crookshanks were joined by Neville’s new owl Athena, whom Sirius had persuaded Augusta to buy for him. Susan, Hannah and Tracy had also purchased cats while Daphne had chosen a handsome tawny owl.

True to his word, Sirius had sat down with the Longbottom matriarch and had a long conversation about the way her grandson had been treated up till now. Sirius had finally persuaded the woman to stop trying to mould Neville into a replica of his father, including, buying him his own wand, instead of having him use Frank’s. it had been a tough conversation but both Neville and Augusta seemed to be in a far better place, having come to an understanding of each other.

Andromeda looked around cautiously, hoping to catch a glimpse of Narcissa, even better if Lucius wasn’t with her. Ever since seeing her baby sister at Sirius’s trial, she was desperate to do something to help her get away from that awful man. She would have a long talk with Sirius tonight, he could definitely step in, as Head of the Family and he didn’t like Lucius, any more than she did. She knew that Draco Malfoy would be in the same year with the twins and had warned them both. She didn’t know what the boy would be like, but perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad for the twins to befriend him. 

The adults had just ushered the seven children into a compartment near the back of the train, when a gaggle of red heads came barrelling towards the train.  
“Isn’t that the Weasleys?” Sirius asked, he couldn’t be certain how many children Arthur and Molly had at that point, after so many years missing in action. Cyrus nodded.

“I almost forgot that Ronald will be in the same year as our group” Amelia added. “Hopefully there won’t be too many issues there”.

“Why would there be problems Amelia, I’ve always found Arthur and Molly to be lovely people” Remus asked.

“Arthur is a good man, but he’s cowed by his wife and Molly is a Dumbledore worshipper through and through. Who knows what that woman will have taught her children and how our group will react to that if one of the Weasley children says something foolish to them” Augusta explained bluntly.

“I have heard that Ronald in particular has a tendency to speak without thinking, and parrot his mothers’ beliefs rather loudly” Amelia mused,

“Ooh, I’d love to be a fly on the wall when he meets Helena, she’ll rip the poor boy to shreds if he starts going on about how wonderful Dumbles is” Dora cackled, Sirius’s eyes gleamed with mirth at the thought.

“Well we don’t know how things will play out over the next few hours, but I’m sure we will all be hearing from our children by tomorrow” Ted said, effectively putting an end to the conversation.

“What say we grab a drink, to celebrate?” Sirius suggested. Cordelia begged off, saying that she wanted to take Astoria out for a special treat, since she wouldn’t be seeing Daphne again until Christmas, but the rest of the group agreed to join Sirius for a quick drink at the Leaky Cauldron  
*  
The friends soon settled in to watch the view, as they headed off to school for the first time. They were hoping for a quiet and uneventful ride to Scotland, but after Helena’s statement to the Daily Prophet, they were expecting some curious gawkers to seek them out eventually. They were soon proven correct when a bushy brown-haired girl knocked politely on the door, only to then have it thrown open by the red headed boy that was trailing behind her.  
“Excuse me, but I’m Hermione Granger and this is Ron Weasley. He’s looking for his brothers”  
“I think they’re avoiding me” the boy cut her off loudly.

“Gee I wonder why” Daphne muttered under her breath, the boy glared at her, just as Harry moved to brush his hair out of his eyes. The red head reacted instantly when he caught a glimpse of Harry’s scar.

“You’re Harry Potter!” he said, barging further into the compartment to get a good look.

“Yes, we’re very aware of what our names are thank you Ronald” Helena drawled, Susan and Daphne snickered. Ron glared at the three girls

“Oh, you must be the other Potter” he snapped dismissively at Helena.

“Oh, I’ve read all about you two” Hermione exclaimed, then recoiled at the withering look Helena gave her. Sensing the tension rising, Hannah jumped in to soothe the waters.

“Hermione was it? I take it you’re muggleborn” the other girl nodded, and Hannah took pity on her and explained.  
“All of those books were written by people that have never even met these two. Harry and Helena spent the last ten years in the muggle world and have only known the truth for a few months.” Seeing the crestfallen look on the girl’s face Helena decided to be nice.

“Hermione I’m sorry I reacted so strongly. It’s those writers that piss me off, not you. You’re obviously just getting used to the magical world yourself and I’m sure you didn’t mean any insult. If you’d like to get to know the real us, Harry and I are always happy for more friends.” Helena offered her hand to the Hermione, who shook it gratefully. Ron, meanwhile, had made himself comfortable, sitting across from Harry, which made the seats far too crowded. Helena was about to ask the obnoxious boy to leave, after all he’d been nothing but rude and she didn’t have any desire to be around him, nobody else had invited him to join them after. Unfortunately, before she could say anything, the door was thrown open again, this time by an aristocratic looking blonde boy and two, gorilla like boys behind him.

“So, it’s true then? The Potter’s have come to Hogwarts” the blonde drawled.

“What’s it to you Malfoy? Your death eater father send you to spy on them?” Ron butted in again.

“Hello cousin” Helena said calmly, Draco cocked an eyebrow, surprised at the address.

“Wait, you’re cousins?” Ron said incredulously.

“So are you Weasley. Or did your parents not teach you your family tree?” Daphne grinned. Ron leapt to his feet, fists raised, the other two boys who had yet to say a word, mirrored the redhead’s actions. Before they could come to blows however, two more redhead boys came into the compartment.

“Causing trouble are we, Ronnikins?” they chimed in unison. “Messrs Gred and Forge Weasley at your service, Lord and Lady Potter”, they reached out their hands to Harry and Helena in tandem, Helena snickered at their antics, relieved that a fight had been averted. The twins frogmarched Ron out of the compartment, just as the conductor’s voice echoed through the train to let the students know that they would be at Hogsmeade Station in ten minutes. The butterflies that Helena had thought she’d suppressed after her earlier conversation with Remus and Amelia, suddenly resurfaced in her stomach. Being separated from Harry wasn’t all she was concerned about of course, tonight, she and Harry would come face to face with Dumbledore, Hagrid and McGonagall, for the first time since that fateful night. 

She had to force herself to take a deep breath when she finally saw Hagrid, who was waiting to lead the First Years to the boats that would take them up to Hogwarts for the first time. Sirius had told the twins that he did not hold Hagrid responsible for his actions that night, so she would give him the benefit of the doubt for now.  
She groaned internally as Ronald shoved his way onto the boat that she was sharing with Harry and Neville, but she resigned herself to ignoring him, wrapped up in her own thoughts as she was. Her sense of dread increased as she and her fellow First Years trooped into the castle, to be met by Professor McGonagall. Helena barely heard a word of the Scottish woman’s spiel about the four Houses. Sensing her unease, Harry clasped her hand reassuringly.

“It doesn’t matter if we don’t end up together, Lena, we’ll still find a way to hang out” her brother assured her, she smiled at him gratefully, but did not let go of his hand as McGonagall, led the nervous group of students into the Great Hall. She felt someone staring at her and looked up to see a man, clad all in black, looking at her as if he had seen a ghost. Remus and Sirius had mentioned that the Potions teacher, Severus Snape had once been a very close friend of Lily’s. Helena surmised that this man must be him, she was the spitting image of her mother after all, or so she’d been told.

She was pulled from her thoughts, as the Sorting Hat finished its song and Professor McGonagall began calling out names.

“Abbott, Hannah”, the stern looking Professor McGonagall called. Helena watched her new friend put the Sorting Hat on.

“HUFFLEPUFF!” The hat called and Hannah ran toward the table of yellow and black. She was quickly joined by Susan, but when Tracey was sorted a few minutes later, she ended up in Slytherin. Then to Helena’s surprise, Hermione was sorted into Gryffindor, she had thought the girl was bound for Ravenclaw. Daphne soon joined Tracey in Slytherin, as did Draco Malfoy and his two goons, Neville joined Hermione in Gryffindor, which Helena was happy about, that should help Neville’s confidence and he would be a good friend for the young muggleborn girl.

Helena’s nerves ratcheted up as a set of twins, Padma and Parvati Patil were separated, being sorted into Ravenclaw and Gryffindor respectively. Her nerves shot up after Pansy Parkinson joined Slytherin, it was finally Harry’s turn.

The hat seemed to take forever with her brother, and Helena was sure she could see him mouthing something that looked suspiciously like, “Not Slytherin, not Slytherin”. She guessed that Harry was still feeling affronted by Draco’s behaviour earlier.

Then her brother finally won the debate as the hat cried out “Gryffindor!” The reaction from that table confirmed Helena’s concerns that they would be too noisy a house for her taste. Two boys who must be Ron’s twin brothers were chanting,

“We got Potter. We got Potter” but Helena wasn’t listening, she knew it would be her turn next. When the racket finally died down, McGonagall called out,

“Potter, Helena.”

After the reaction to her brother’s sorting, she wasn’t surprised to see all eyes on her as she approached the stool and donned the hat.  
“Nervous eh?” came a voice in her head that Helena ascertained must be the Hat. 

“Not sure about being separated from your twin, but you know you won’t be happy among the Lions. No, you’d certainly be better off somewhere else” the hat told her. “You’d certainly do just as well in Slytherin as your brother would have if he weren’t so unwilling to go there, but it would be a hard road for a half-blood girl. There have been very few half-bloods in Slytherin and not one of them was female. You seem rather open to the idea though, and you already have a few friends there, interesting… Well young Helena, you seem very bright and driven, Ravenclaw would be another good fit for you, even if you don’t yet have a friend there. I urge you to keep an open mind and make friends in all houses, as you already seem well on the way to doing. You have ambition and if anyone could unite the houses as you imagine them, you could do it. Your parents would have been so proud. Now my dear, you have a choice to make, two houses that would suit you equally well. interesting, well, if you’re sure, better be…..”


End file.
